Rik’s weight loss secret: eat more, exercise more

Over the past three months, I’ve lost somewhere around 10-15 pounds. My doctor is very proud of me, and my girlfriend of five years said the other night that I’ve never looked better. Here’s the Rikomatic two-step plan for getting healthy and losing weight:

1. Eat More Food
2. Exercise More

There really isn’t much more to tell. Ok, there’s a little more…

1. Eat More, Eat Better
I follow a few simple guidelines, based on advice from my doctor:

• More frequent, but smaller meals. I don’t eat huge meals during the day or at night. All during the day I eat smaller meals and snacks that I keep stocked at work and at home. I try not to let my blood sugar get too low or go too long without eating something.
• Lots of fresh vegetables, fruits, meat, dairy, and nuts. I got to town on vegetables and meat, which is great. It does take more planning to make sure that I can have something healthy to eat whether its at 3PM in the middle of the workday or 1AM and I get the munchies.
• Very few carbohydrates and processed sugars.  Cutting back on rice and noodles was a huge step for me. When I do eat grains, I try and make them whole grains.  I’ve even decided that I like brown rice.
• Nothing “low fat” or “diet.” I enjoy full fat yogurt, full fat milk, chicken with the skin on, the works. (I gotta have Diet Coke, though.)
• Less processed foods.  Basically I avoid anything out of a box or bag.  I took to heart the advice from this NY Times article.

So nothing really draconian or difficult to remember. No counting points or measuring things. I still eat the occasional cookie or burger or milkshake. Just not every day.

Seriously, I feel the difference in my body.  I have more energy, and I don’t ever feel hungry.

2. Exercise More

Several times a week I do something active, whether it’s breakdance class, going to the gym, riding my bike or lindy hopping.

The key for me was joining a gym.  I’ve resisted going to the gym for years. But I finally decided to give it a go about a year ago, and it’s made a world of difference.  It’s really great having an accessible, no hassle place to get some quick cardio or strength training exercise, even just for 30 minutes.  Really, I wish I had done this ten years ago.

It doesn’t really matter what you do — power walking, swimming, salsa dancing — as long as you make a routine out of it.  But a combination of cardiovascular and muscularly-engaged activities is best.

That’s really it.  Nothing fancy, and probably will need some tweaking over the years. But for me, for now, its working.